Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Conjures Up $58.4M Day One

Warner Bros. Pictures’ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince earned a massive $58.4 million from 4,275 theaters domestically on Wednesday, including a record-setting $22.2 million from midnight shows.

The opening is the second-best Wednesday ever, trailing only the $62 million Michael Bay’s Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen made on June 24. The biggest day ever for a film was set by The Dark Knight with $67.2 million last year on July 18.

“Half-Blood Prince’s” tally bested the $44 million earned by Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on its opening Wednesday two years ago. It went on to earn $139.7 million domestically its first five days.